18 Mar 2013

Lemon Meringue Pie Cupcakes

I don't know about you guys, but the weather here is absolutely rubbish. Drizzly and cold, so much for it being spring time! What I have really been yearning for is a little bit of sunshine, however the bank balance won't stretch to the Bahamas, so I am settling for summery food instead. Lemon makes me think of the summer, so as promised, here is a recipe that uses the homemade lemon curd that I made in this post.

Make the vanilla cupcakes and leave to cool. Once cool, core the centre and fill with just over a tbsp of lemon curd (or however much you can fit in without it over flowing). Slice the bottom off the cored cake and use the top as a little lid for the curd. Repeat with all of the cupcakes.

Whisk the egg whites until soft peaks form and then gradually add the caster sugar whilst whisking continuously. Whisk the mixture until stiff peaks form and it is thick and glossy. Then spoon into a piping bag with a large round nozzle, then pipe onto each of the cupcakes.

Using your blowtorch, carefully lightly brown the meringue mixture until the outside is slightly crisp. You can at this point pop them in the oven at 180 C for about 5 minutes if you wish your meringue to be firmer. Then garnish with some lemon zest.

Whilst this may not be a perfect holiday replacement, it does create a few minutes of escapism from the dreary 'spring' weather.

Easter posts will be coming very soon! I may even attempt making my own homemade chocolate eggs. It's going to be fun (and messy)!